1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to beverage compositions having minimal lingering sweet aftertastes and to methods of making such beverage compositions. More particularly, the present invention relates to the use of tannic acid to reduce the lingering sweet aftertaste in beverage compositions that have been sweetened with sucralose.
2. Description of the Related Art
Artificial sweeteners are common ingredients in beverage compositions. Unfortunately, artificial sweeteners often negatively affect taste. Various approaches have been explored in the past to overcome such negative effects.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,647,483 issued to Eisenstadt discloses that glucono delta lactone, sodium gluconate and cream of tartar powder may be used to eliminate the bitter aftertaste conventionally associated with the artificial sweetener saccharine. U.S. Pat. No. 4,219,579 issued to Pampiano, on the other hand, provides that an aqueous extract of Gentiana Lutea may be used to reduce or eliminate the bitter aftertaste of saccharine. U.S. Pat. No. 4,254,155 issued to Dwivedi teaches that the lingering bitter aftertaste associated with the use of the artificial sweetener neohesperidin dihydrochalcone may be overcome by adding a taste modifier such as glycine, maltol, ethyl maltol, monosodium glutamate, disodium 5'-inosinate, sodium acetate, calcium sulfate or calcium chloride. U.S. Pat. No. 3,510,310 issued to Breckwoldt provides that one may eliminate the problems with the taste, mouthfeel and texture of beverage mixes pre-sweetened with the artificial sweetener N-cyclohexylsulfamic acid by adding adipic, citric, fumaric, malic, lactic, tartaric, or succinic acid, or mixtures thereof. Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,106,632 issued to Wong, which relates to sweetening compositions containing at least potassium chloride, one or more food grade additives, and the artificial sweetener acesulfame-K, discloses that fumaric, adipic, succinic, citric, butyric, capric, tartaric and malic acid, or mixtures thereof, may be added to the disclosed compositions to impart a taste or sensation of sourness.
In each of the patents mentioned above, the respective food-grade acids were used to overcome the negative effects on taste associated with the particular artificial sweetener employed. Food-grade acids also have been used, however, to affect properties of artificially-sweetened beverages other than those directly associated with taste. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,292,336 issued to Latymer relates to a heat-stable sweetening composition containing a peptide sweetener such as thaumatin, and provides that the pH of such a composition can be adjusted by adding citric, malic, fumaric or mucic (galactaric) acids. Dwivedi, discussed above, teaches that certain acidulants may be added to compositions sweetened with the artificial sweetener neohesperidin dihydrochalcone to overcome discoloration problems associated with this particular sweetener.